Warrior's welcome: former Interfet chief
Australian Major-General Peter Cosgrove faces a ceremonial challenge by a
Maori warrior as Major Rick Witana looks on. General Cosgrove is in
Wellington to thank New Zealand for its contribution to East Timor.
Reuters photo

JOANNA JOLLY in Jakarta

The respect of East Timorese for the
United Nations transitional administration's work is waning and it is in
danger of being compared to the previous Indonesian colonial regime,
observers said yesterday. Francisco Guterres, legal adviser to the main
political party, the National Council for Timorese Resistance (CNRT), said
the UN's inability to consult directly with the Timorese people might lead
to a campaign of civil disobedience in the country.

"The UN is seen as selfish, working
to their own agenda without consulting with the people of East
Timor," Mr Guterres said in the East Timorese capital, Dili.

"If the community leaders keep
complaining and the UN continues to refrain from allowing them to
participate in the decision-making, we are afraid this will create civil
disobedience against the UN in East Timor."

Mr Guterres, who was involved in setting
up the meeting between East Timorese guerilla group Falintil and
pro-Jakarta militia in Singapore last month, said that previously, the UN
had been viewed as helping the East Timorese.

But over the past month, the UN had made
decisions regarding the social and government structure of the new country
without consulting CNRT leadership.

"We have discussed this and agreed
that the UN administration is now working at a sub-district level without
consultation with us.

"This has caused a lot of
disappointment in East Timor," Mr Guterres said.

His comments follow the resignation on
March 6 of a British UN official, Professor Jarat Chopra, from the UN
mission.

Professor Chopra said that he resigned
out of frustration as he believed the UN was not setting a meaningful
timetable for the transfer of power to the East Timorese.

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